This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1955. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.

Why Historical Insurance Policies May Be Accessible

Pre-1986 Commercial General Liability (CGL) policies were occurrence-based and did not contain an effective pollution exclusion in Washington. If contamination occurred while those policies were active, those historical insurance carriers may still have a legal obligation to fund the cleanup costs, even if the business closed or the property changed hands.

Petroleum contamination at this site originated from underground storage tanks and fuel-dispensing infrastructure that operated for more than three decades before 1986, when occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies were the industry standard and carried no effective pollution exclusion in Washington. The documented remediation expenditures — large-scale soil excavation, tank removal, landfarming, off-site disposal, and over a decade of groundwater monitoring — were incurred to address releases tied directly to those pre-1986 operations. Historical carriers who wrote CGL policies covering the Unocal station during its 1955–1986 operational window may still be obligated both to recover past cleanup costs and to fund remaining remediation.

Restorical's role is to locate viable historical policies, determine whether a successful coverage claim is possible, and assist our clients and their legal counsel to obtain insurance coverage. Restorical then manages the claim, including accounting, to ensure the cleanup is funded in a timely manner.